UPDATE: The Bind on Account Water Boots price is 40g and will require Anglers reputation.

In the PTR currently (in the first hour of the PTR):

Every character above 100 gets the water boots free in the mail.

The BoA version of the water boots was reported by someone as being reusable. (others report it’s consumed on use. need official info on this)

(The main discussion at the moment is whether or not the Water Strider should be able to use Mount Equipment or if it should keep it’s water walking ability instead)

Pros

You get the Water Mount Equipment at level 20 and it’s account bound.

You get one free if you’re exalted with The Angler’s.

40 gold as of right now for alts. For the price it’s not bad.

That means you can water walk with your friends riding on your multi-person mount starting at level 20!

Cons

The Water Strider is losing it’s passive water walking ability so that it can use Mount Equipment. (Many players would prefer if their Water Strider was left untouched instead)

It breaks the fundamental nature of a waterstrider bug, which kills immersion.

Paying for a feature we already had.

This is only the tip of many concerns over how players worry their game is losing the things that make it fun, kind of like how the talent tree was trimmed to make things more simple. It’s a debate based on love for the game and should be treated as a serious matter. Even if I personally enjoy it. I can’t help but hope you, Blizzard, find a solution that will satisfy both sides of this.

Kaivax:

A small clarification to our plans with Mount Equipment–

Hitting level 100 on one character will unlock this system. Once unlocked, the system will be available to all characters, and the equipment pieces themselves will require level 20. If your goal is to have waterwalking while leveling, you can just enable the waterwalking Mount Equipment (there will be one available via Anglers reputation that will be bind-on-account), and it’ll work exactly as before, with the benefit of making all of that character’s mounts walk on water.

Patch 8.2 Rise of Azshara includes many new mounts and an upcoming Mount Equipment Slot. Unfortunately, it's not all good news, with the Water Strider Mount having its passive waterwalking removed. Edit: Blizzard has clarified that once the system is...

Hitting level 100 on one character will unlock this system. Once unlocked, the system will be available to all characters, and the equipment pieces themselves will require level 20. If your goal is to have waterwalking while leveling, you can just enable the waterwalking Mount Equipment (there will be one available via Anglers reputation that will be bind-on-account), and it’ll work exactly as before, with the benefit of making all of that character’s mounts walk on water.

Yeah, but now you’d have the ability to use a mount, besides the Water Strider.

I dunno about you, but being stuck using only one mount forever sounds absolutely boring as hell

That’s one of the goals here. There are a lot of mounts out there and it’s strange to have a “wrong choice” when out running around. You’ll easily be able to keep the ability just as you have it now but there will be other options that you (the player) can make if you prefer something else. How you about the world, where you often go, and how fast you like to escape from things could all contribute to what works best for your playstyle.

There are a few extra notes so like Death Knights can do waterwalking via Path of Frost (and Shaman with Water Walking). That should help empower these classes a bit and help make them feel a bit more unique.

I’m not sure what the price of the waterwalking shoes will be offhand, but it should be pretty affordable on the Anglers vendor. We’ll have the PTR up soon™ and look forward to hearing your feedback on that.

Would it be possible to have the water strider be like the sky golem. It can have innate water walking but is not effected by mount equipment?

I will check but my personal opinion from my play experience is that the water strider ability is just much stronger than the sky golem herbing. We nerfed the water strider once and if we leave it with the ability there then it’s more in the line of getting everything and less of making a choice for what you want. We want there to be a choice based on your play and interests. If herbing on the run provides too strong of a benefit then there might need to be changes there but currently I don’t think that’s the case.

Brave soul.
I commend you for stepping into this thread on the Monday evening preceding the drop of 8.2 on the PTR. However, this price you speak of not knowing offhand is what will be a determining factor in many players decisions. Personally, I’ve stuck by/accepted/dealt with the changes made over the years to keep the gameplay from just becoming a static habit. But having spent my money and time acquiring the rep required to gain the reward, only to have it removed and then require it to be re-purchased…no. That’s the line. I’m sorry to sound like I’m giving an ultimatum because it’s not. It’s a decision made based on honor, or the lack thereof.

EDIT - and to be perfectly fair, yes, I agree and have so for many years that Blizzard has the right to change content at their discretion at any time. But this is one of those times I won’t be agreeing with it.

Just something I’d like to get your perspective on, if the character who earned the Anglers reputation along with the mount gets the water walking item for free, what would a fair price be for the alts to get it? If that character who earned the reputation and mount has the option to water walk (but might choose something else), do you feel that alts should have every single thing that the other characters have?

Also, just out of curiosity, how often would you estimate that you have you used the water strider mount in the 6+ years it’s been available?

Again, Bornakk, thank you and Kaivax for replying in this thread. I know with all of the changes that are coming in 8.2, you’re both going to be busy readers and jotter-downers of input.
However, after further contemplation of how this change to the water strider’s innate ability to stride is being removed and replaced by a system that will require further purchases made to regain that ability, even with all of the free ones that appear to be mailed to alts @ 100 or above, I cannot agree with the implementation. If there were an item that was BoA and reusable, or a toy perhaps, or a spell that replaced the function of the striders with zero additional cost to their owners, then yes. It’s a sad to inform but easy to live with decision, my conscience will just not let me accept the current rendition being shown.

I appreciate the feedback. I know things get a little hectic at times but it is helpful to know what people are thinking and I do appreciate the reasoned discussions.

Just one other thing to note is that I believe the BoA water shoes on the Anglers vendor is supposed to require the Anglers reputation to be purchased as well. So while it is changing a bit you will have access to the water walking more readily than those who haven’t done it at all. Also, I expect the other items (anti daze, etc.) to cost a fair amount more than 40g.

No I think he means that in order to get them, you have to be exalted (like getting strider). Meaning you only have to BUY them via the exalted rep, not USE them. But… that’s not clarified and a bit vague though. So I’m only assuming. x.x

Like, you’d go on your toon you got the strider with, right, buy a bunch of shoes, ship 'em off, and boom! Use them on your toons no problems.

Yeah, edited the above, it’s meant to just be the purchasing. If you earn it on one toon you can mail it to and use it on whoever is level 20+. If someone hasn’t been out there fishing with Nat Pagle then they can’t buy them for 40-50g and will need to get them through other means.